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- Software
Roxio, a division of Sonic Solutions (NASDAQ: SNIC), the leader in digital media software, is celebrating a successful year with in-depth demonstrations and special show pricing on its biggest ever line of software for Mac OS X at Macworld Expo, January 10th to the 13th. Among the demonstrations available to attendees will be how to use Toast 7 to easily transfer favorite audio and video entertainment to mobile devices such as the iPod video, Sony PSP, and mobile phones. In addition, Roxio will be showcasing its must-have suite of iPod software accessories, The Boom Box and its award-winning DVD backup application, Popcorn. Roxio also will be introducing standalone versions of its CD Spin Doctor and Motion Pictures HD software.If you'd like to read more, Roxio's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
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- Home Entertainment
In the wake of Microsoft's CES announcement of a peripheral HD-DVD drive for the Xbox 360, the company's gaming division boss Peter Moore has revealed that a Blu-Ray drive could also be on the cards for the system.Of course, like with HD DVD, Blu-ray would probably be used only for movies and not for games. If you'd like to read more, head on over to GameIndustry.biz. Add a comment
Speaking with Japanese website ITMedia at the huge electronics show in Las Vegas last week, Moore said that a Blu-Ray drive for the Xbox 360 could be released if the Blu-Ray standard, which is backed by Sony, wins the next-generation DVD format battle.
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- Optical Storage
Imation Corp (NYSE: IMN - News), a worldwide leader in removable data storage media, today announced it has begun its scale-up of manufacturing for HD DVD and Blu-ray optical recordable media in preparation for product introduction in early 2006. The company invested more than $10 million in 2005 in research, development and modular manufacturing capabilities to position Imation among the industry leaders delivering the newest high-capacity optical formats to customers.Imation plans to ship their media during the first half of 2006. More information can be found here. Add a comment
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Lower than expected retail prices for entry-level HD-DVD players exhibited at the recent 2006 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in the US may dash an expected early marketing advantage of Taiwan-developed FVD (forward versatile disc) players, according to Taiwanese makers of optical disc drives (ODDs).While priced lower than many expected, Blu-ray and HD-DVD players still aren't exactly cheap. If you'd like to read more, head on over to DigiTimes. Add a comment
The HD-DVD group, led by Toshiba, showcased an entry-level HD-DVD player model with a recommended retail price of US$499, about half the price originally expected by market experts, the Taiwanese ODD makers pointed out. Pioneer and Samsung, two members of the Blu-ray Disc (BD) group, exhibited BD players with recommended retail prices between US$1,000-1,800, 30-50% lower than the US$2,000-2,500 expected by market experts, the sources said.
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- Optical Storage
Although opinions vary on how to preserve data on digital storage media, such as optical CDs and DVDs, Kurt Gerecke, a physicist and storage expert at IBM Deutschland GmbH, takes this view: If you want to avoid having to burn new CDs every few years, use magnetic tapes to store all your pictures, videos and songs for a lifetime.As frequent CDRLabs readers, this information shouldn't really surprise you. If you'd like to read more though, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment
"Unlike pressed original CDs, burned CDs have a relatively short life span of between two to five years, depending on the quality of the CD," Gerecke said in an interview this week. "There are a few things you can do to extend the life of a burned CD, like keeping the disc in a cool, dark space, but not a whole lot more."
The problem is material degradation. Optical discs commonly used for burning, such as CD-R and CD-RW, have a recording surface consisting of a layer of dye that can be modified by heat to store data. The degradation process can result in the data "shifting" on the surface and thus becoming unreadable to the laser beam.
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The PX-755SA will hit store shelves some time in February for a suggested retail price of € 90. If you'd like to read more, Plextor's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
Plextor today announces a new high-end Serial-ATA DVD-ReWriter drive - the internal PX-755SA capable of 16x DVD+/-R and 10x DVD+R DL burning speeds. The Premium PX-755SA takes advantage of the latest motherboard SATA connectivity and comes with a comprehensive package of powerful features to give the professional user full recording control.
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- Optical Storage
At the CES ,NEC has confirmed its plans to market its HR-1100A HD DVD-ROM drive in Europe starting in March. Canal Plus of France will be supplying the HD DVD videos. There is no word yet which movies will be released in this format. The only thing we do know is that 30 movies will be available from day 1. According to NEC, a combination device that writes CDs and DVDs will be sold starting in May. The Japanese company has also announced its first HD DVD-/DVD-/CD burner for July. The first list price for the HD-DVD drive will probably be far below the original target of 500 euros.We have not heard when the HR-1100A will be available in the US. However, it will probably be only a matter of time before it makes its way over here. If you'd like to read more, head on over to heise.de. Add a comment
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Microsoft plans to place OEM orders with leading makers of optical disc drives (ODDs) in Taiwan for external HD-DVD players for use with its Xbox 360, according to industry sources. Microsoft Taiwan, however, declined to indicate whether Microsoft will offer such external HD-DVD players and leading Taiwanese ODD makers, including BenQ, Lite-On IT and Quanta Storage, said they have not heard of such news.I would not be surprised if they placed an order with BenQ as they're already producing the DVD-ROM drive modules in the Xbox 360. If you'd like to read more, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment
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Judging by the naming scheme and specs, the DRE16-B is based on the DQ60 from BenQ. For more information on the DRE16-B, head on over to MSI's website. Add a comment
Writing Speeds: DVD+R: 16x
DVD+RW: 8x
DVD+R DL: 8x
DVD-R: 16x
DVD-RW: 6x
DVD-R DL: 4x
DVD-RAM: 5x
CD-R: 40x
CD-RW: 24xRead Speeds: DVD-ROM: 16x Max
Buffer Size: 2MB
CD-ROM: 40x Max
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- Optical Storage
Primera Technology, Inc., the world's leading developer and manufacturer of CD/DVD duplication and printing equipment, today announced its new TuffCoat with AquaGuard surface by Imation water-resistant media.Primera's new TuffCoat with AquaGuard media will be available at the end of January. More information can be found here. Add a commentTuffCoat with AquaGuard surface is the world's first water-resistant and smear-resistant inkjet-printable CD-R and DVD-R media. The AquaGuard surface, developed by Imation Corp. (NYSE: IMN) and incorporated into Primera's TuffCoat media, offers many benefits, including:
- Water and smear resistance. Leveraging a proprietary surface that utilizes nanoparticle technology to grip and hold ink, printed images are locked in place exactly where originally applied. The discs are highly resistant to smearing and color bleed when exposed to water and humidity.
